CULTURETECHLENSAljamain Sterling
VERIFIED evidence grade — build store (JSON graph)
Combined Graph record U-08010 · provenance: build store (JSON graph), record CTL-E-7138.
Aljamain Sterling (born July 31, 1989, in Uniondale, New York) is a Jamaican-American mixed martial artist and a former UFC bantamweight champion. Sterling won the bantamweight title at UFC 259 on March 6, 2021, in a first: champion Petr Yan, ahead on two scorecards, struck him with an illegal knee while he was grounded in the fourth round and was disqualified, making Sterling the first fighter in UFC history to win a championship by disqualification. He answered the skeptics in the rematch, beating Yan by split decision at UFC 273, then defended against T.J. Dillashaw and, at UFC 288 in May 2023, Henry Cejudo — a division-record third consecutive successful defense. Sean O'Malley knocked him out at UFC 292 in August 2023 to end the reign. Sterling moved to featherweight in 2024, beating Calvin Kattar and, in a five-round sweep in Shanghai on August 23, 2025, former title challenger Brian Ortega, then defeated Youssef Zalal in a Las Vegas main event on April 25, 2026. His record stands at 26–5.
Answer summary · this record in brief, from its own record text
Aljamain Sterling (born July 31, 1989, in Uniondale, New York) is a Jamaican-American mixed martial artist and a former UFC bantamweight champion. Sterling won the bantamweight title at UFC 259 on March 6, 2021, in a first: champion Petr Yan, ahead on two scorecards, struck him with an illegal knee while he was grounded in the fourth round and was disqualified, making Sterling the first fighter in UFC history to win a championship by disqualification.
The record
- Also known as: Funk Master, Aljo
Notes
The Ortega bout was contested at a 153-pound catchweight after Ortega's failed weight cut; the UFC's own featherweight division review nonetheless carries it as Sterling's last featherweight fight, and it is stated so here. Curator's Judgment (DRAFT): Sterling's reign began in the sport's most disputed coronation and was legitimized the hard way — rematch, Dillashaw, Cejudo — a sequence this record states plainly, because it answers the dispute by itself. Photo: CLEARED — Alijamain Sterling at UFC 228.jpg, CC BY 3.0 (the Commons filename misspells his first name; the file's description names him).
Sources
- UFC, “Co-Main Spotlight | Brian Ortega vs Aljamain Sterling” (UFC Shanghai, August 2025); accessed 2026-11-04 (primary source · build store)
- UFC, “Where We Stand: Featherweight Division | February 2026”; accessed 2026-11-04 (build store)
- Wikipedia, “Aljamain Sterling”; accessed 2026-11-04 (build store)
- Cagewalks fighter profile, “Aljamain Sterling”; accessed 2026-11-04 (build store)
Photograph · rights-cleared record, CultureTechLens Photo Rights Log
Aljamain Sterling at UFC 228, September 9, 2018
Aljamain Sterling at UFC 228, September 9, 2018 — MMAnytt, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Source: CultureTechLens · view at source
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Record CTL-E-7138 · Combined Graph record U-08010 · CultureTechLens Knowledge Graph · 4 sources.
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Researched and maintained by the CultureTechLens research program · CultureTechLens Combined Graph, Release 2026-11-04. Corrections are public: the corrections log.
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Chicago: CultureTechLens. “Aljamain Sterling (CTL-E-7138).” CultureTechLens Combined Graph. Chicago, IL: CultureTechLens, 2026. https://culturetechlens.com/graph/entities/ctl-e-7138/
APA: CultureTechLens. (2026). Aljamain Sterling (CTL-E-7138) [Entity record]. CultureTechLens Combined Graph. https://culturetechlens.com/graph/entities/ctl-e-7138/
MLA: CultureTechLens. “Aljamain Sterling (CTL-E-7138).” CultureTechLens Combined Graph, 2026, https://culturetechlens.com/graph/entities/ctl-e-7138/
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